


Broken

by imaginationskies



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Heartbreaking, Oops, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-04
Updated: 2016-07-04
Packaged: 2018-07-20 03:07:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7388086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imaginationskies/pseuds/imaginationskies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Is being the savior of Paris really what it seems to be?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Broken

**Author's Note:**

> IDK MAYBE TRIGGERING??? Just a warning in case.

Marinette waited.

She waited, waited, and waited.

Her hands tightly gripped the edge of her balcony. He was coming and she knew it. She would wait for him no matter what. The night breeze snuck between her pigtails and blew her bangs out of her eyes as if keeping her company. Marinette settled in the wind's cold embrace, wishing for the person she was waiting for to appear any moment now.

A quiet sigh escaped her lips in the form of a small, white wisp floating away. She watched as it disappeared into the air, vanishing from her sight.

" _Purr_ -incess," A low, sneaky voice called from behind her. Marinette spun around only to find a pair of glowing green eyes staring at her through the darkness. The face was close, a bit invasive of personal space, but that was the kind of person he was. The leather clad outfit, the mask that hugged his face, the messy mop of hair which seemed as if he didn't want to brush it that morning; all of this added up to him.

A smile started to grow on her face. "Chat Noir," Marinette said with her head held high. Her chin was up, her shoulders held back and she straightened up. The smile grew into a smirk. "It's a pleasure to see you again. How did you get back there without me noticing?"

"Cats are quiet on their feet." His simple reply satisfied her. He leaned back, finally allowing some space to come between them. "My Lady hasn't shown up for tonight's evening patrol again, so _you_ get to be my Ladybug for today." He tapped the tip of her freckled nose with the tip of his black claw ever so gently. It felt as if he didn't touch her at all.

Marinette wouldn't admit to anyone that she has been neglecting patrol to simply get to know her teammate better; it was a whole new side of him that she couldn't see as Ladybug. Granted, he was still the sarcastic, ever flirtatious superhero, but their conversations together have grown meaningful unlike when they meet in battle and barely have time to greet each other. She and Chat have grown to become good friends.

She gestured for him to sit down in her chair and she, in turn, sat herself down next to him. They spoke with each other as if they knew each other their whole lives; Marinette rambling about a stressful day at school and Chat Noir reenacting his latest fight with an Akuma. As they continued to talk, Chat Noir's eye caught sight of a couple of band-aids on her arms. "What happened there?" He gestured at it with his hand. She looked down, remembering how she had hurt herself in an Akuma fight.

"N-Nothing!" She stuttered and hastily tugging down the sleeves of her grey blazer. "Clumsy me fell down the stairs again. You know me; unable to walk in a straight line without tripping!" Chat raised an eyebrow but decided not to press on.

As their conversations grew, so did their laughter. Marinette's voice rang so loud it was if all of Paris could here her bell-like laugh. "Then, as the Akuma tried to attack me, I said, 'You have _cat_ to be _kitten_ me right now!'" Chat Noir waved his arms as he was finishing up his story. Marinette had to hold her stomach to restrain herself from exploding from a fit of giggles. Suddenly, a clicking sound came from her room and the echo of a door creaking open caused her to stop.

"Marinette, is that you?" A warm, but tired voice called.

"Yes, Mama!" Marinette replied, rushing towards her balcony's exit and pulling it open. Chat Noir got up from her seat and peeked over her shoulder but the teenage girl was trying to push him away so the person speaking couldn't see him.

She caught sight of her mother; sleepy-eyed and yawning. "Who are you talking to up there?" She asked. "I don't see anyone."

Marinette looked back at Chat, who simply shrugged. He was in plain sight. Perhaps his black leather helped him blend into the night. Less explaining for Marinette, luckily. "No one, Mama!" She exclaimed in a hurry, "I'm just, ah, practicing for my act in our school play! That's right! I'm Cinderella's stepsister!"

Sabine rubbed at her eyes tiredly. Her bobbed hair clung to her cheeks. "I didn't know you had a play coming up. Come to bed now, alright? It is late and we cannot have you waking the neighbors." Her mother laughed softly. Before leaving her room, however, Sabine peeked through the door one more time. "Marinette, sweetheart, remember you have a doctor's appointment tomorrow. Don't forget to take your medicine." She headed down the stairs and closed the door behind her.

The pigtailed girl turned towards the table by the seat Chat was sitting in. A small, medicine bottle and a cup of water were placed there earlier in the day, yet Marinette had forgotten to take them in the morning. "Sounds like I need to take my leave now, Princess." Chat Noir gave a gentleman's bow with one arm behind his back and the other out into the air.

"I wished you'd leave earlier," Marinette commented sarcastically while reaching for the bottle. She heard Chat snicker as she uncapped the medicine and shook the bottle. A single, white pill fell onto the palm of her hand. She swiftly popped in her mouth while grabbing the glass and chugging the water so she could swallow the medicine quickly. After placing the cup back down on the table, she wiped her lips with the back of her hand. "Chat-." Marinette turned around to find that the black cat was no longer on her balcony. She ran towards its edge, peering over the ledge and searching for him on Paris' rooftops.

He was nowhere to be found.

 _He must've left already,_ Marinette thought. She reached for the purse hanging from her shoulder. "Tikki. He's gone now. You can come out." No response. "Tikki?" Marinette repeated as she poked the side of the bag. Still no response. _Ah, she's asleep. I would be too... It's late._ Marinette headed down her stairs and carefully took off her purse, not wanting to wake the sleeping kwami.

She crawled into bed, pulling the covers over her chin and closed her eyes, wondering about how tomorrow's doctor appointment would go.

❀ ❀ ❀

"Have you been properly taking your medication, Marinette?" The doctor said as he shone a bright light into her eyes.

"Yes, sir. I take it every morning, including today." The lie easily slipped out of her mouth; she rarely took her medicine. She winced at the sight. Her body felt sluggish as if lacking energy. She felt extremely drowsy like she could fall asleep standing up. The doctor proceeded with the check up; checking her ears and mouth and finding nothing wrong.

Sabine watched with fear in her eyes, a fear that was always there whenever they needed to do a check up. Marinette knew why. Her mother feared for the worst, and honestly, so did Marinette. She simply didn't want to say so out loud.

The doctor cleaned his instruments and placed them on the white, stainless counter behind him. He took hold of a clipboard and a pen. "Now Marinette, if you already remember from last time, I need you to tell me who you have been talking to recently," He said while uncapping the plastic writing device. "Your mother can help verify things for me if necessary."

"Okay..." Marinette attempted to recall who she talked to about a month ago. "The other day, I was studying with Alya in the library. We have a science project on the periodic table and decided to work together." Sabine nodded slowly with a worrisome smile and the doctor proceeded to write down Marinette's words. "Um, Nino invited me a couple weeks ago to a music gig of his. He wanted me to listen to his new songs and tracks." Marinette began counting on her fingers as if it would help her remember. There was also Chat Noir, but how shocked would they be if they learned that she was friends with Paris' famed superhero?

"Yes... Alright..." The doctor mumbled, absorbing every single last drop of Marinette's words. He was sure not to miss a single thing. "Anyone else?"

"A-Adrien." His name flowed over her tongue like a sweet, sticky syrup. It was thick and stuck to the roof of her mouth. It wasn't as easy to say like Alya's and Nino's. Confused, Marinette tried again. "Adrien. His locker is across from mine and we talk occasionally."

The smile on her mother's face dropped. The doctor caught this and continued to write things down. Marinette caught this as well. "Sweetie," Her mother slowly spoke. "Adrien... Is a friend of yours?"

Marinette nodded, recalling her crush's blonde hair and green eyes that seem to suck you right in. "Yeah. He sits in front of me in class. We've been in the same class for almost a year, now."

The doctor placed his pen down. "I think that is enough for today," He said. "Marinette, we may need to keep you back at the hospital for a few days just to run a couple of tests. There... Is a chance that the medication hasn't been helping as much as we hoped it would."

Her heart plummeted.

She was hesitant to agree, but it seemed as if she had no choice. "Of course, that's fine." Marinette placed a hand over her purse. Sabine reached out and squeezed her daughter's hand. Marinette could feel her mother's warmth.

"We'll assign a room to you shortly. In the meantime, feel free to wait here." The doctor got up from his seat, straightened his white coat and left the room. Her mother leaped up from her seat and instantly gave her daughter the biggest and tightest hug she could offer.

"I'm so sorry, Marinette," Sabine squeezed Marinette so tightly that the girl thought she couldn't breathe. "I was sure that it was going to get better."

"It's not your fault, Mama," Marinette leaned her face into her mother's shoulder. Her eyes began to close on their own. The exhaustion finally kicked in and she began to doze off.

❀    ❀     ❀

There was a blur of words. Marinette couldn't hear it clearly because she was still half asleep. It sounded as if they were painted and swirled together and splattered messily onto a canvas; it was difficult to make out. " _Medicine... Side effects... Doses of..._ " She shifted her position. Doses of what? What were they going to do? Her eyelids fluttered open to find her parents talking to the doctor in front of her. She was laying in a hospital bed in a plain white gown. A thin blanket hung from her body like dead skin.

"Ah, you're awake," The doctor said. "We'll bring food to you shortly. Mr. and Mrs. Dupain-Cheng, if you could follow me please." Marinette watched as her parents gave her a comforting smile before leaving the room. The blinds of the window shuttered back and forth, revealing the grey, cloudy sky of Paris.

Marinette's purse was laying on her bed when it opened on its own. "Marinette!" The small, red kwami cried as it flew to her side. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, thank you for worrying about me, Tikki," Marinette gave the kwami a grin and hugged the being against the side of her cheek. It felt as if she were hugging nothing.

"I don't think that medicine they've been giving you has been good for you," Tikki flew out of her hands and in front of her face. "I've been telling you to stop taking it, but you did it last night! It's been making you so drowsy that you fall asleep in class, and earlier today must've been because of it! How could Paris survive if their hero falls asleep on the job?"

"Nevertheless, Mama would make me take it anyways," Marinette giggled at her mother's stubbornness. "She's very strict like that..."

"Yes, but-." Tikki to protest when a loud crash came from below. Marinette jumped out of bed and pressed her face against the window. An Akuma in a bright, colorful costume was waving a giant pencil in the air. Whatever she wrote seemed to physically appear. "Let's go!" Marinette exclaimed without hesitation. "Tikki, spots on!"

Transforming into Ladybug always gave her a rush of adrenaline. It felt as if she could be free from the world of hospitals and medication; she could be herself. After the blinding lights ended, she looked down and saw herself in her normal, spotted bodysuit.

"I have got to get to the roof!" She said as she tried to open the window. She couldn't leave this way. Ladybug ran to the door, yanking it open and slamming it closed behind her. _The roof,_ she thought as she thundered down the hall. _Where is the roof?_ A sign at the end of the hall caught her eye: Stairs to the roof. "There!" She shouted and ran as fast as her feet could take her. She couldn't risk the lives of innocent civilians in the time it takes to walk up a flight of stairs.

Getting to the top, she opened the door and a torrent of rain hit her. A strong gust of wind pushed her back, but she trudged forward. Finally reaching the end of the roof, she stood on the edge and wound up her yo-yo. She drew her arm back and prepared to throw it.

"MARINETTE! STOP!"

She blinked and looked down at her hand. It was her purse; the strap tightly wound around her hand. Marinette looked down at her clothes; she was still in her white, hospital gown. She looked up to find her parents and her doctor staring at her from the doorway. "Oh," She began to feel weak in her knees. "I... I almost jumped." Marinette opened the purse's clasp. "Tikki, are you there?"

The bag was empty.

Sabine pushed through the wind and the rain to her daughter's side. She pulled the shivering girl away from the edge and wrapped her in her arms. "Let's get you back to bed, okay?" Sabine lead Marinette back to the door where her father watched in shock. "Your medicine; let's ask the doctor to get more medicine."

Marinette remained silent as the four traveled back down the stairs and to her hospital room. _It happened again._

As they stepped foot into her room, Sabine swiveled the girl around and looked her right in the eyes. "Marinette, you are going to explain to us what just happened." Tom put an arm on his wife's shoulder and she took a step back to give her daughter a breath of air.

"I-I must've been sleep walking again," Marinette fumbled over her words, trying to convince herself and her parents. "The medication has been making me exhausted-."

"No, Marinette," Tom demanded. He crossed his arms. "Explain to us what you were doing. Now."

Chills ran up and down Marinette's spine. She felt the hairs on her arm stand up. She didn't think she would have to reveal her identity so soon, and without preparation as well. But the Akuma was out there; she saw it with her own eyes and she needed to go stop it as soon as possible. She' d quickly explain to them, find Tikki, and purify the Akuma. That's all there was to it.

"I... I'm Ladybug," Marinette admitted while rubbing the back of her neck with her hand. Her voice raised. "I'm the one who goes and fights the Akumas. And while we're talking, Hawk Moth is out there, possibly Akumatizing more innocent victims!" She pointed her index finger at the window. "I need to stop him before it's too late!" A loud crash sounded outside the hospital. "See?! I have to go!"

There was a pause.

A pause so long and so thin that you could slice through it with a single word.

"Marinette..." Tom said softly to gently break the silence. "There are no such things as Akumas."

The world seemed to shatter into a million shards of glass around Marinette's feet. She wanted to move, but if she did, she could risk getting cut by the broken pieces. "No..." She murmured. "You're lying to me. Y-You heard the crash sound too, right?"

"There is no Hawk Moth..." Tom finished his statement. His voice choked up, but he coughed it down and got a hold of himself. "There are no superheroes known as Ladybug and Chat Noir."

_Liar._

"Adrien, you know the boy you told us about?" Sabine asked gently with her eyes bloodshot red. "He doesn't go to your school; he lives in Germany, studying abroad and pursuing modeling for his father."

A sharp, ringing sound echoed in the back of her head. A pulse beat against her forehead. A twitch developed under her eye. They were lying to her. _Liar, liar, pants on fire._

"It appears that you've conjured up a persona for yourself," The doctor said as he flipped through his pages of notes. "It built up to the point where you convinced yourself to not reveal it to anyone, hence you randomly disappearing from school and leaving the house at strange times. Assuming you have been ' _sleep walking_ '. All for the persona you made to save Paris from imaginary villains."

_Liar._

"That would also explain the injuries you've been getting in the past year," The doctor gestured ad her body with his pen.

"Sweetheart," Sabine sobbed as she held her arms open. "Why didn't you tell us?"

Marinette didn't budge. _Liar, liar, pants on fire._

"I fear this isn't a minor case of schizophrenia," The doctor turned to her parents as if she wouldn't understand a word he was saying. "We might need to up things a notch and give her antipsychotics."

"No," Tom said sternly. "I will not allow my daughter to under such treatment."

"Then I'm afraid not much can help her at this point," The doctor's face remained expressionless. It was obvious to her that he didn't care about her. "She _clearly_ needs help. It is either the antipsychotics or she can go into shock therapy. Your choice of which is less extreme."

A thud it the window. Marinette looked to see Chat Noir clinging on and waving at her, gesturing her to come out and play with her. "Look! See?! He is real and he is there! I need to go help him!" Marinette gestured wildly at the glass while turning back to her parents.

"Marinette..." Sabine choked up. "Look again."

She swiveled her head again only to see a simple pigeon that aimlessly continued to bump against the window glass. _Bump, bump, bump._ It went. Each bump was its own mock. _I am free,_ it looked at her with its eyes. _I can fly away and do what I want. You're stuck there with you bed and medicine. Forever and ever and ever and ever._

"T-Tikki told me not to take the medicine!" Marinette shouted, blaming everything on the kwami. "Because it made me tired! It made me sleepy; I couldn't pay attention in class! I wouldn't be able to save Paris!"

The doctor wrote down some more on his clipboard.

"NO!" Marinette shrieked and collapsed onto her knees. "No..." She curled up, hugging her legs to her chest. A couple of tears trickled down her face. "He's real... They're real. I know it." She felt so alone. The people she loved were lying to her. Her black cat was out there. He'd come back for her. She knew. The glass cut at her legs and feet, stinging her with their lies.

Marinette felt broken.

She didn't want to accept that a whole year of her life had all been a lie.

❀    ❀     ❀

A week. Seven days. One hundred and sixty-eight hours. Ten thousand and eighty minutes. Six hundred four thousand and eight hundred seconds. That's how long she has been in the hospital. That's how long Marinette had learned that she, Ladybug, wasn't real. Her close friend, Tikki, never existed. Hawk Moth never terrorized Paris. And Chat...

She refused most food and drink. Her motivation to do anything had dropped to nothing. In that week, she had become dead flesh hanging from twigs. Paler than Snow White. Her eyes; sunken, dark, and without life. Her hair was a mangled bat's nest.

"Hey girl," Alya sat at the foot of her bed. Marinette couldn't hear her, though. She didn't even know when Alya came in; she was solely focused on the window, waiting for the black cat to show up again. _Any day now,_ she told herself. _He is real, I know it._ Alya leaned forward and Marinette's hand. "How are you feeling? School's been lonely without you."

Marinette froze at her touch; Alya felt warm. And alive. "Y-You..." Marinette opened her chapped lips. Alya perked up, extremely relieved that she was speaking again. "You're... Real, right?" Tears began to form in Marinette's blue, eyes. They shone like crystals; delicate and fragile. Ready to shatter at any moment. "I'm not making you up?"

"Oh, Marinette," Alya pulled the crying girl into her arms. "I am real, and I'm here with you." Marinette tentatively reached around the girls back, and as she could feel her shoulders with the palm of her hands, she tightened the hug. Waves of relief flooded over Marinette; she wasn't making up her best friend after all.

"Then!" Marinette pulled away, still very tired from the antipsychotics and lack of energy, but nonetheless eager. "That mean Chat Noir is real! If one of my best friends is here with me, he must be out there as well, right?" She turned her attention back to the window. "He's out there, waiting for me."

Alya shifted her glasses so she could wipe her eyes. "No, Marinette," Alya's voice dropped into a whisper. A whisper so quiet it was barely audible. "He's never coming back; he was never here to begin with." The dark haired girl dropped her arms from behind her friend. The girl in front of her wasn't real. No friend of hers would convince her that Chat Noir didn't exist.

Nevertheless, Marinette continued to believe. No amount of antipsychotics or shock therapy could tear her mind away from him.

Marinette waited.

She waited, waited, and waited.

But he would never appear again.

☾ **_General Terms_** ☽

**_Schizophrenia_ ** _\- a severe brain disorder in which people interpret reality abnormally. Schizophrenia may result in some combination of hallucinations, delusions, and extremely disordered thinking and behavior._

**_Antipsychotics_** \- _used to treat psychotic disorders; less helpful for treating symptoms of schizophrenia such as social withdrawal, lack of motivation, and lack of emotional expressiveness._

**_Shock Therapy -_ ** _treatment of chronic mental conditions by electron upside therapy or by inducing physiological shock._

**Author's Note:**

> (don't bash me if i got some facts wrong; i simply did research to the best of my ability.)


End file.
